Deported veterans optimistic after Texas lawmaker’s dinner with Trump

Deported military veterans living in Mexico say they are hopeful that a recent dinner between U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez,  a freshman Democratic congressman from McAllen, and President Donald Trump will open the door to their return to the United States and make it harder to deport those who served in the military.

“We’re very, very hopeful that things are moving forward,” said Hector Barajas, a deported veteran who runs the Tijuana-based Deported Veterans Support House, which serves as the nerve center of the effort to organize deported veterans. “We’re excited. I think it’s definitely a start that the administration is having this conversation.”